Suzette and I arrived early and chatted until we saw Betty pull in.
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| Suzette |
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| Betty |
And, yes, if it looks like they were facing one another and talking, that's because they were. Then right after that 3 more cars arrived all following directly behind one another.
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| The next 3 cars that showed up together + one more |
The fact that they were that close was just a coincidence as the time at that point was 9:20, so 10 minutes earlier than planned. Now let's see who the occupants of those vehicles were.
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| Pink hat is Pat and Mike with his MUG |
I don't know if we should give Mike's Mug a name or if "Mike's Mug" is sufficient. But then what else could we call it that would be unique - Hot Stuff? Oh, but I guess Mike showing up with Hot Stuff may not sound too good, hmmm. I guess Mike's Mug it'll remain. Now, on to that 3rd vehicle - the red truck and its driver, that was Kristen.
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| Kristen |
But wait, there's more! Right after that another car pulled in with Christine being the driver.
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| Christine |
Christine has been very busy of late, working a lot in her studio and also teaching workshops down in Scottsdale. But, she clearly took the time out to read this blog as she showed up with an answer to last week's question and then also answered another question she heard posed by Betty. The first was about that cement block we used to prop our paintings on last week. -- It turns out it was installed as a place for someone in a wheelchair to be able to sit while there. The question Betty had wondered about had to do with the concern that they were doing improvements to this area and would that mean it would become a fee area. The answer was, No, or at least not now. The road down was the end of the improvements and the rocks that they placed around the parking area outlining the space are all that will be happening.
Oh, one more thing about Christine, we all know that she is a renowned pastel artist. I've also posted links multiple times to magazine articles about her and her work as well as a youtube interviews she had with a magazine publisher. Well, in addition to all of that, she was recently contacted by a printer for art galleries that want to be able to print and sell verified copies of her work. So, another congratulations to Christine for once again being recognized for her beautiful artwork and achievements.
Ok, back to the group that had arrived. After chatting in the parking lot for a bit, we headed out down the sandy path.
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| (L to R) In the trees is Betty, Pink Hat Pat and Mike |
Mike checked out the spot that's off to the right when you get there.
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| Mike |
He didn't stay there -- we'll have to find him later.
Betty & Suzette, however, went out to that point where it splits off and there's the little waterfall
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| (L to R) Betty and Suzette |
And, as I was coming back from taking that picture to look for my spot I saw someone else who's been missing for a few weeks.
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| Carolyn |
It was Carolyn, and while you can't see it in this picture, she had a big smile on her face as always. Speaking of smiles, check this one out.
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| LeAnne |
That's LeAnne, she also always has a big smile, so cheerful looking. I really like the look of her walking downhill in this photo. Her back is so straight that the downhill movement is really pronounced.
Kristen and Christine picked spots near one another. While this may not be obvious to you, if you look directly behind Kristen, you'll see a hat (that's Christine) and there's Mike heading off down to parts unknown.
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| Mike walking off, Christine's Hat & tripod and Kristen with the red chair |
Carolyn and I picked spots next to one another.
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| Carolyn in her spot |
and then I got another surprise. Kris showed up - another smiling happy face.
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| Kris (with a K 😉) |
Tecla also came by, but she didn't stay long, but good to see her just the same.
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| Tecla - she's talking to Carolyn |
Wow, check out how colorful Tecla was -- she's wearing all the primaries.Oh, I just found a better picture of Christine in her spot along with Kristen and Pink Hat Pat in their spots.
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| (L to R) Kristen, Christine and Pink Hat Pat |
Ok, I need to see if I can go find Mike, I did see the direction he headed in, let's give it a shot. After walking for a bit I found him, see.
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| I swear it's Mike |
Ok, so, that might be a little difficult for you to actually see him in his spot. But it's him -- I'll get a little closer.
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| Mike in his spot |
Oh, and his view -- well if you scroll back to the beginning of this post, you'll see the top picture is what he was looking at. You can go ahead and take a look, I'll wait ...........
Oh, good, I see you found where you left off, let me go on. If you can believe I was surprised that there was still someone else who showed up that I missed. It was the "New Girl," Anna.
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| Anna in her spot |
How about that and it turns out she was behind Betty -- if you look to the upper left of the photo you'll see Betty. So, Anna is only with us for a short while as she didn't meet us until close to the time they'd be heading back to their other home. But, don't worry, she'll be back in December. Anna, glad you've been able to join us!
Oh, I also just found LeAnne in her spot - she's chatting with Suzette - guess we were getting close to gallery time.
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| (L or R) LeAnne, Suzette |
Then I found Kris with a K in her spot
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| Kris in her spot |
And, while I was searching I did discover that Tecla actually did seek out a spot for a bit.
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| (L to R) Tecla, Carolyn |
So, at 11:29 a gust of wind blew up. Perhaps you're wondering why I know that time so precisely? How about we had just finished building the Gallery and before I could take a photo the gust blew it down. So, at 11:31:20 it was rebuilt and I was able to get this photo. But before you look at it let me tell you that since it was so long, I then also broke it down into multiple shots. So keep reading after the next photo and you'll find photos of a few at a time looking a bit bigger.
Ok, now for the bigger pics taken from that same lineup. Some are duplicated in following photos.
Based on the count and assigning pictures to people, someone didn't put their's in. I think it was a sketch and maybe she thought it wouldn't be seen. Anna had brought along her one from last week because she completed it at home, so she has 2 in.
Well, we did manage to cram together for a group photo and this time I had the iPhone holder which did make it easier. So, we were all given the opportunity to smile on 2 (multiple times).
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| (L to R and In and Out) Christine, Kris, LeAnne, Pat, Mike, Betty, Kristen, Carolyn, Anna, Suzette, Me |
Did I mention it was a beautiful day -- it got pretty warm as you can tell by the pushed up sleeves and everyone was wearing a hat. It won't be long before those gray barren trees will be sporting green.
That's it for this week. Until next time...
Cecilia